In a massive world such as in World of Warcraft, there will undoubtedly be numerous characters. As with anything in fiction, people interpret these characters’ motives and personality differences. So here are some of the most misunderstood characters in WoW.

Deathwing
Before he was an omnicidal dragon bent on destroying the world, he was Neltharion the Earth-Warder. As one of the five dragons the Titans empowered, he created the very mountains and rivers he would destroy later as the world was shaped. Unfortunately, he became corrupted by the Old Gods, and he turned into Deathwing the Destroyer. He was the one who changed the landscape of Azeroth forever and would have destroyed everything had he not gotten himself thrown into the sea.

Grommash Hellscream
Nobody else has it worse than this orc. He was a chief back when humans were their primary concern. Then he got thrown into Azeroth, where he wanted to die, but he met Thrall. Together, they wanted to find a place where their race could live in peace.

However, they encountered the same demons that practically caused all the trouble for their race in the first place. Grom fell into old habits and drank demon blood, which turned him into a thrall for those demons. Thrall (the character) worked to free his friend from the curse and succeeded just long enough for Grom to sacrifice himself to defeat the demon that cursed him.

That was supposed to be the end of it. At least until his son, Garrosh, went back in time to stop the orcs from becoming the demon’s slave in the first place. Similar to all other time-traveling adventures, this resulted in consequences worse than what they wanted to keep from happening. Without meeting Thrall, an angrier alternate Grommash Hellscream led a new Horde from the past to kill and conquer everybody else.

Lady Sylvanas Windrunner
The Banshee Queen herself is a very interesting character to study. She was once a proud high elf ranger until she was killed and raised as a banshee by a Lich-King-controlled Prince Arthas. She spent some time under the control of the Lich King but broke free when circumstances weakened the King’s influence. Resenting what she had become, she and the rest of the Forsaken (rebel undead) vow to avenge themselves. She gives a higher purpose for those who have already died once.
Despite being mistrusted by a majority of the Horde, she becomes its warchief, being named so by the dying Vol’jin during the battle for the Broken Shore.

Jaina Proudmoore
The most powerful human sorceress alive, Jaina suffered at the Horde’s hand again and again. It was enough to harden her once kind personality into one bent on the defeat of her enemy. She was once Prince Arthas’ lover and witnessed his fall into becoming the Lich King. After the fall of Lordaeron, she gathered all the survivors she could and fled to Kalimdor. She then founded the city of Theramore, which was almost destroyed by a Horde attack after Deathwing’s demise.
Then she became the leader of the Kirin Tor. After some events involving the Horde stealing the Divine Bell, her hate solidified. It all came to a head when the Horde abandoned the Alliance during the Battle for the Broken Shore. Despite that, the rest of the council of Kirin Tor pled to readmit the Horde back, which Jaina vehemently refused. Unable to accept that decision, she left the Kirin Tor.

The Lich King
The Lich King is actually the spirit of orc shaman Ner’zhul, trapped within the Frozen Throne and a tool to raise an undead army for the Burning Legion. When Prince Athras took up the Frostmourne in an attempt to stop the undead plague that’s adding to the Scourge’s army, their spirits merged and became the Lich King that everybody knows. Athras meant well, but his actions cost more than what his intentions could ever make up with.

As for Ner’zhul, he was a good leader for the orcs, was able to unite the disparate tribes and even saved his race from total demonic possession. Once it was revealed that he unknowingly was following those same demons, he essentially told them to leave the orcs alone. Unfortunately, his apprentice betrayed him to those demons, and Kil’jaeden the Deceiver was able to bind his increasingly corrupted and psychotic spirit into the Frozen Throne.

Illidan Stormrage
A powerful sorcerer in his own right, Illidan Stormrage was thought to be a betrayer when he joined the Burning Legion. Turns out, he wanted to sabotage the Legion from the inside. Still, it got him imprisoned in the Barrow Deeps for a long, long time. He was released by Tyrande during the Third War, and through the manipulations of the Lich King, absorbed the energy from the Skull of Gul’dan. He became a demon as a result, and his body reflected the change.
After the war, he was approached by Kil’jaeden, the same demon who ‘created’ the Lich King. The demon wanted him to destroy the traitorous King. Illidan used an artifact to follow this order but was stopped by his brother. He abandoned the mission to save the woman he and his brother loved, and then he fled to Outland. Joined by new allies, they overthrew the tyrant of Outland and claimed its stronghold and army. He was again reminded of his task but was stopped by the King’s champion, Arthas.

He retreated to prepare to destroy the Legion. In spite of destroying one Legion stronghold, he was struck down by a combined effort of Akama, some adventurers, and his former jailer. His body was then stored in a vault to serve the rest of his eternal sentence.

Now that you’re finished reading the article, it’s back to grinding for WoW gold. Happy adventuring!